lander



F. E. LANDER. MEANS FOR PARTING THE MOORINGS 0F SUBMARINE MINES 0R MINE SWEEPING ROPES OR CABLES.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 26. I9I8. v I

Patented Aug. 5, 1919.

M, w, MAM; x 6%,

I F. E. LANDER.

' 'MEANS FOR PARTING THE MOORINGS 0F SUBMARINE MINES 0R MINE SWEEPING ROPES 0R CABLES.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 26. I918.

Patented Aug. 5, 1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

1&1 @mkm provements in Means "UNITED STATES PA onmon.

FRANK EATON LANDER, 0F BLACKIHEATH, LONDON, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR T0 VICKERS LIMITED, OF WESTMINSTER, ENGL MEANS FOR PABTING- THE MOOBINGS OF SUBHASBINE MINES OR MINE-SWEEPING- ROPESOR GABLES.

To all ughont may concern: I

Be' 1t known that I, FRANK EATON LANDER, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at 24 Eliot Park, Blackheath, in the county of London, En land, have invented certain new and usefu Imfor Parting the Moorings of'Submarine Mines or Mine-Sweeping Ropes or Cables, of which the following is a specification. v

This invention relates to improved means by which the mooring cables of submarine mines may be severed or, on the Other hand, the moorings of mines may be protected from mine sweeping devices by severing. the mine sweeping ropes or cables, the means being of the type in which an explosive charge associated with a mooringor mine sweeping cable is adapted to be fired by the action of an opposing cable and to sever such op osing cable.

ccording to this invention the rope, wire or cable (hereinafter referred to as a cable) used for mooring or for mine sweeping purink poses is provided with an explosive over which the opposing cable is adapted to slide and during its passage to operate by mechanism belonging to the the link is destroyed and the opposing cable severed. To prevent the explosion of the charge parting the cable to which it is connected, a secondary connection may be providedwhich takes up the tension of the cable whenthe link is destroyed. The said connection may itself carry another explosive link and be provided firlng' pin does not exist.

with a further connection or connections be-' tween points on opposite sides of the explosive link or links, any number of connections and links being fitted according to there% uirements-. A

4 he firing device is preferablyof a type which cannot be operated until the link is submerged and for this purpose the spring ofthe firing pin may be normally unener gized and energized only when the opposing cable operates a lever which acts upon a cylinder and piston device to transmit pressure through water trapped in the said device, so that until submersion the necessary operative connection between the lever and In order that the said invention may be clearly understood and readily carried mto explosive link embo which is cla the link.

Specification '01 Letters Patent.

effect I will describe the same more fully with reference to the accompanying drawin in which igure 1 is a lon itudinal section of an dying this invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan of the same; and

Fig. 3 shows diagrammatically 'an arrangement of such links connected up to a cable.

A is the link casing containin an explosive char e B provided with etonator C is the ca le connected to the end member A through the longitudinal aperture a into which the end of the cable passes. D is the firing pin with spring a! normally unenergized. E is the firing lever. F is a cylinder mounted in the tail piece A of the link and receiving the sliding iston f made in the form of an open cylind a inst the springs f and F, is an eye m o unted 0n the knuckle joint 9 0n the end of the tail. piece A by means of which the link is connected up to another art of the mine sweeping or mooring cab e or to atowed member b is effected. H, I-l tions by means of which the cable is kept unsevered when a link is exploded.

When the link is out of the water the position of the firing mechanism is as shown in Fig. 1, the sprin' d being uncompressed so which the mine sweeping that by no possib e action of the mechanism can the detonator b be fired. This results from the fact that the cylinder F contains air at atmospheric pressure so that even if the iston f and cap f be pressed in the air wo d-not be compressed to a pressure suflicient to actuate the firing pin, which moreover is separated from the cylinder space by the small diaphra d of metal foil, celluloid, rubber 'or ot er suitable material mped in place and protects the .inner mechanism from contact with the water. The firing lever E, which is pivoted at 6 between two lon lugs a on the casing A, is normally helf up by a safety pin passedthrough the hole a in the said lugs, which pin is removed before submersion of A body ring a is provided for lifting thelink by a suitable connection.

The link is So connected upthat if an opposing cable, either the mooring or the mine sweeping cable, meets it, the cable is er provided with the .closing cap f, the piston and cap acting Patented Aug. 5', 1919. Application filed June 2c, 1918. Serial in. 242,104.

are the secondary c'onneccaused to slide up the sloping face a of the end piece A and thence over the sloping tail e of the lever. When it passes the pivot c it begins to press down the lever against the spring e causing the rounded end er to meet the piston cap f. The cylinder F has already been filled with water-on submersion of the link, the cap f justclearing the top of the cylinder to permit of this, and the first action of the lever is to press the cap f. down against the pressure light spring f until the lead ring or washer f meets the upper end of the open piston .7, closing its outer end and so trapping the water within the cylinder. The closed piston is then compressed against its spring f I :and the pressure of the water increased until the copper diaphragm d firing pin spring 01 is comp the small terminal piston cl.

yields, when'the ressed through The firing pin is held back by a spring catch d of any sui table type, indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 2, until the compression reaches a predetermined amount, when the catch is overcome and the firing pin freed, moving forward under the pressure of the now energized spring and striking the detonator cap.

If the cable is rovided with the secondary connections H as indicated in Fig. 3 the explosion of a link will simply allow the corresponding connection to straighten out and take the ull of the cable. Two or more explosive links may be provided as shown, each with its secondary connection, and one or more of the connections themselves may be provided with an explosive linkyas indicated.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. In cable severing means by which a cable to be protected effects the severing of an opposing cable, alink for the cable to be protectec, an explosive charge provided in the said link, firing mechanism adapted to be operated mechanically and an operat-- ing lever mounted on the link, by which the said firing mechanism isoperated by pressure of the opposing cable as it passes over the said lever, whereupon the link is destroyed and the opposing cable severed,

2. In cable severing means,

a cable pro-. videdwith an explosive link-adapted to be fired by the pressure of an opposing cable and a secondary connection connecting up the cable to be protected on either side of the explosive link, the secondary connection bemg adapted to take u the strain of the ca 1e on the explosion o the link.

3. In an explosive link as claimed in claim 1, a. safety device preventing the firing of the link'by-the opposing cable until the link is submerged.

4:. In an explosive link adapted for cable severing purposes, firing mechanism, a member adapted to be opera-ted by the opposing cable and a device interposed between the said member and which device is filled with water on submersion of the link so as to provide an operative connection between said member and the firing mechanism.

5. In an explosive link for cable severing purposes, firing mechanism, a member adapted to be operated by the opposing cable, a chamber adapted to be filled with water on submersion of the link and means for trap pin the water in the chamber on operation of t e said member by the opposing cable, the trapped water forming an operative connection between the cable operated member and the firing mechanism.

6. In an ex losive link for cable severing purposes, a firing pin, a, normally unenergized firing spring, a lever adapted to be actuated by the opposing cable, a chamber interposed. between the lever and the firing pin, adapted to be filled with water on sub ,mersion' of the. link, a means for closing the said chamber, on operation or" the lever, whereupon the pressure from the lever is transmitted through the water so as to energize the firing spring and operate the firing FRANK EATON LANDER.

the firing mechanism, 

